NEW YORK -- While the Peacock network still has a solid lock on the No. 1 slot in morning news shows, CBS' "This Morning" is now breathing down the neck of "Good Morning America."
According to Nielsen numbers released Monday, NBC's "Today" pulled in a 4.6 rating and 22 share the week of Dec. 29-Jan. 2, while "GMA" scored a 2.9/13 and "This Morning" weighed in with a 2.7/11 -- the two-tenths of a rating point difference is the closest the two broadcasts have come since the week of Dec. 24, 1978.
"GMA's" 2.9 rating is also the show's lowest since 1980, according to an NBC spokesman.
"This Morning" exec producer Al Berman attributes recent strides to the show's bolstered list of contributors (including Martha Stewart and Bob Vila) and "getting our on-air team to relax a bit and exude more of a family atmosphere."
Another contributing factor may be that Berman spent five years as a senior producer on "The CBS Evening News," and he said that (under news prexy Andrew Heyward's direction) he and "Evening" exec producer Jeff Fager have been finding ways to work together more.
"You're seeing more hard news and CBS 'front-line correspondents' on our show, and it's really satisfying to be able to offer that level of journalism in the morning," Berman told Daily Variety.
ABC's "GMA" has also been dealing with co-host Charlie Gibson's exit plans and slipping ratings for "World News Tonight," while "This Morning" may be benefiting from CBS' recent evening news ratings rise.
"We're not certain that last week's numbers are really indicative of what's going on, with CBS using a three-day average, and both NBC and ABC using a four-day average," ABC News spokesperson Eileen Murphy said. "Traditionally, there isn't a lot of television viewing going on the week of New Year's. If these numbers stick next week, we'll have something to talk about." While CBS is excited about the trend, an NBC spokesman pointed out that "Today" is still ahead of the other two morning shows by 9 share points -- "the largest gap ever in morning television."
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